Panettone Bread Pudding

This Panettone Bread Pudding is the perfect make-ahead holiday breakfast. With a rich, custardy texture and a decadent rum syrup, it's an easy and delicious way to start Christmas morning without the stress.

If you're like most people during the holidays, you’ve probably got a million things on your to-do list. Between last-minute gift wrapping, finishing up meal prep, and juggling all the festivities, who has time to cook a big, elaborate breakfast on Christmas morning? That’s where this Panettone Bread Pudding comes in—an easy, make-ahead breakfast that lets you enjoy the holiday without spending hours in the kitchen.

Panettone, with its rich, sweet flavor and airy texture, is the perfect base for a decadent bread pudding. The best part? You can prep it the night before, so on Christmas morning, all you need to do is pop it in the oven and enjoy some time with family, open presents, or even sleep in a little longer. No need to rush around while trying to make a big breakfast—this dish is ready to go with minimal effort and maximum flavor.

Bread pudding itself is a classic comfort food with a rich, custardy texture that’s a little like a cross between French toast and crème brûlée. With panettone as the star ingredient, this version is extra special, packed with flavor and just the right amount of sweetness. Plus, the rum syrup drizzled on top is seriously irresistible—you’ll be tempted to drizzle it over everything!

Ingredients:

Bread Pudding:

1 loaf of panettone bread (you can also use challah bread) 14-18 oz.

5 cups half n half (half whole milk, half cream)

8 egg yolks

½ cup granulated sugar

1-2 teaspoons vanilla extract

3 Tablespoons butter, melted (1 to brush the baking pan, 2 to brush on top of the pudding)

Syrup:

⅔ cup heavy cream

⅓ - ½ cup brown sugar

2 Tablespoons butter

¼ teaspoon salt

½ - 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1-2 Tablespoons rum

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

How To Make Panettone Bread Pudding

I usually use Challah bread for bread pudding, which is a buttery egg bread, but right before Christmas, Panettone is something that is very commonly seen in stores and is a great choice. It's an Italian sweet bread that has a similar texture to challah, since it's also buttery and eggy, but it's also studded with raisins and candied orange and lemon zest. There are lots of different varieties out there. 

If you're using simple Challah bread, you can also add dry fruit to the bread pudding, as well as nuts, chocolate chips, candied citrus peel, etc.

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit.

Cut the bread into ¾ - 1 inch cubes. Divide the bread between two rimmed baking sheets. Bake the bread cubes in the preheated oven for about 15 minutes, rotating the baking sheets halfway through and tossing the cubes. Take out of the oven and set aside.

It's important to use dry bread for bread pudding, so that it soaks up the custard well.

Brush a 13 x 9 inch rimmed baking dish with 1 Tablespoon of melted butter. Place the dried out bread cubes in the baking pan.

In a large bowl, whisk the half n half, egg yolks, sugar and vanilla extract until evenly combined. Pour the egg mixture over the bread cubes. Brush the top of the bread cubes with the remaining 2 Tablespoons of melted butter. You can bake the bread pudding after letting it soak for about 30 minutes, or cover it up and refrigerate it overnight.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. If you stored the bread pudding in the refrigerator, bring it to room temperature for about 30 minutes before placing it into a hot oven.

Bake in the preheated oven for about 45-55 minutes. The center of the bread pudding should be 170-180 degrees. Let the bread pudding stand for about 10-15 minutes before serving.

For the syrup, combine all the ingredients except the rum and vanilla extract in a small heavy bottomed saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium heat and cook for 2-3 minutes, whisking to combine. Turn off the heat and add the rum and vanilla extract. This recipe yields about 1 ¼ cup of syrup.Serve with the bread pudding.

This syrup is great served with pancakes, French Toast, crepes, waffles or ice cream. You can even make it ahead of time and then simply reheat before serving. It stores well in the refrigerator. 

Panettone Bread Pudding With a Creamy Rum Syrup

Olga Klyuchits

This Panettone Bread Pudding is the perfect make-ahead holiday breakfast. With a rich, custardy texture and a decadent rum syrup, it's an easy and delicious way to start Christmas morning without the stress.

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 15 minutes mins

Cook Time 50 minutes mins

Total Time 1 hour hr 5 minutes mins

Course Breakfast

Servings 8

Ingredients

  

Bread Pudding:

• 1 loaf of panettone bread you can also use challah bread 14-18 oz.
• 5 cups half n half half whole milk, half cream
• 8 egg yolks
• ½ cup granulated sugar
• 1-2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 3 Tablespoons butter melted (1 to brush the baking pan, 2 to brush on top of the pudding)

Syrup:

• ⅔ cup heavy cream
• ⅓ - ½ cup brown sugar
• 2 Tablespoons butter
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• ½ - 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1-2 Tablespoons rum
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Instructions

 

• Preheat the oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit.
• Cut the bread into ¾ - 1 inch cubes. Divide the bread between two rimmed baking sheets. Panettone Bread Pudding-1-22Bake the bread cubes in the preheated oven for about 15 minutes, rotating the baking sheets halfway through and tossing the cubes. Take out of the oven and set aside.
• It's important to use dry bread for bread pudding, so that it soaks up the custard well.
• Brush a 13 x 9 inch rimmed baking dish with 1 Tablespoon of melted butter. Place the dried out bread cubes in the baking pan.
• In a large bowl, whisk the half n half, egg yolks, sugar and vanilla extract until evenly combined.
• Pour the egg mixture over the bread cubes.
• Brush the top of the bread cubes with the remaining 2 Tablespoons of melted butter. You can bake the bread pudding after letting it soak for about 30 minutes, or cover it up and refrigerate it overnight.
• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. If you stored the bread pudding in the refrigerator, bring it to room temperature for about 30 minutes before placing it into a hot oven.
• Bake in the preheated oven for about 45-55 minutes. The center of the bread pudding should be 170-180 degrees. Let the bread pudding stand for about 10-15 minutes before serving.
• For the syrup, combine all the ingredients except the rum and vanilla extract in a small heavy bottomed saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium heat and cook for 2-3 minutes, whisking to combine.
• Turn off the heat and add the rum and vanilla extract. Serve with the bread pudding. This syrup is great served with pancakes, French Toast, crepes, waffles or ice cream. You can even make it ahead of time and then simply reheat before serving. It stores well in the refrigerator.

Notes

I usually use Challah bread for bread pudding, which is a buttery egg bread, but right before Christmas, Panettone is something that is very commonly seen in stores and is a great choice. It's an Italian sweet bread that has a similar texture to challah, since it's also buttery and eggy, but it's also studded with raisins and candied orange and lemon zest. There are lots of different varieties out there.

If you're using simple Challah bread, you can also add dry fruit to the bread pudding, as well as nuts, chocolate chips, candied citrus peel, etc.